Thousands flee as fresh tremors hit Greek island

SANTORINI, Greece — Thousands of people fled the Greek island of Santorini by sea and air for a third day on Tuesday as more earthquakes shook the top travel destination.

About 7,000 people have left the island, known for its spectacular cliffside views and dormant volcano, which has been hit by hundreds of tremors since last week, officials said.

One quake with a magnitude of 4.9 hit early on Tuesday, and hours later, was followed by a magnitude-5.0 tremor.

Some 750 earthquakes have shaken the island and the surrounding 1,000 square kilometers since Jan 24, according to Greek monitors.

No injuries or damage have been reported on Santorini and the neighboring islands of Anafi, Ios and Amorgos, however.

Experts say the region has not experienced seismic activity on this scale since records began in 1964.

"This is the first time this is happening. We have not seen it before," Athanassios Ganas, research director at the Institute of Geodynamics of the National Observatory of Athens, told state TV ERT.

He said the area had been hit with more than 40 earthquakes with a magnitude of more than 4.0 in the past 72 hours.

Agencies via Xinhua